T-Bone: A radically new Reprap Board

Hi,

we are currently developing new Reprap Board: The T-Bone.



The T-Bone first of all is a board aimed at driving a complete Mendel printer. It got:

12-24V operating voltage
5 stepper motor driver
10 inputs for end switches
3 inputs for incremental encoders (3 axis supporting closed loop control)
3 inputs for thermistors
1-wire interface for digital tempsensors
2 high power outputs (for extruder and heatbed)
2 mid power output (for fans, LEDs, …)



But the hidden features is where it really shines:

It uses motion controllers from Trinamic which enable us to:

1. Leave the positiong of the stepper motors to the motion controller ICs
2. Drive the motors with constant jerk in a nice S-Motion ramp. The force on the mechanic is slowly increased during acceleration - reducing the stress and enabling driving at much higher speed.
3. Reduce the real-time control requirements

This enables us to implement the whole 3D Printer -like axis coordination and path planning in python. So we can realize features like the most advanced firmwares but with much more potential for adaptions dn optimization since the code is easy to understand and change. Timing and performance is much more relaxed since more buffers are used to cache recalculated values.

Furthermore we can give the printer a nice web interface and make it a complete stand alone appliance.

Currently we are trying to get funding for manufacturing at Indiegogo. So we are happy if you can support us with funding or intelligent questions and suggestions …

What do you think?
Is it something you consider useful?
Is the t-bone interesting for you?
What is missing?

Thanks

Marcus